Euro zone's GDP growth slows unexpectedly
February 16, 2005
By Meera Louis
Frankfurt - Euro zone economic growth unexpectedly slowed in the fourth quarter as Germany and Italy, which account for half the region's economy, contracted for the first time in more than a year.
Gross domestic product (GDP) in the 12 nations sharing the euro grew 0.2 percent in the fourth quarter from the third, when it expanded 0.3 percent, the European statistics office said yesterday.
That is half the 0.4 percent median forecast of 40 economists in a Bloomberg survey and the slowest quarterly pace since the economy contracted in the second quarter of 2003.
"The growth we are seeing is below potential and not enough to boost jobs," said Klaus Baader, an economist at Lehman Brothers International in London.
For all of 2004, the economy grew 2 percent, the fastest in four years. The economy would expand at the same pace in 2005, the European Commission predicted in October.
Yesterday's GDP report is the first estimate and did not provide a breakdown of components. The statistics office will publish those on March 2.
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